This is not going to be one of those statements that say "My work is about exploring the (fill in the blanks) blah, blah, blah in the variety of artspeak that attempts to disguise mediocrity or boringness with incomprehensible and overly cryptic babble.
Truth is, I frequently have no clue as to the whys and whats of the paintings displayed here except that I love to spend my time making them. I can't give any detailed analysis of meanings because there are often none available to me before starting a piece. Sometimes after five or ten years I may look back at one and say "Oh, that's what it was about". Or maybe not. It can be like reading a poem that speaks differently to me each time I read it.When working, my thoughts tend more towards the mechanics of painting ie; is this the right color or how does the light fall.Perhaps it takes someone smarter or more insightful than me to better understand what I've made. But images come to me in strange and unplanned ways and times, like in a supermarket line or at the gym or doing my laundry. Or reading a book or hearing a passage of music.What matters to me is finishing a painting that has some beauty or intelligence and respect for craft. My themes can run to the political or philosophical, the romantic and mythical or reflecting the absurd or comical.I have heard them described as symbolic or allegorical but I don't really know what that is. If you like what you see, thank you. If not, so be it. In any event I'll keep doing this as long as I'm physically and mentally able. And though I have a high rate of ideas that are flawed or just didn't work out, it's okay because that's the price of pushing yourself. I'll simply continue to try to reach my fellow human beings in thoughtful ways. There is still much to do. It makes for a life well-spent.
Thank you, Robert MacDonald
Truth is, I frequently have no clue as to the whys and whats of the paintings displayed here except that I love to spend my time making them. I can't give any detailed analysis of meanings because there are often none available to me before starting a piece. Sometimes after five or ten years I may look back at one and say "Oh, that's what it was about". Or maybe not. It can be like reading a poem that speaks differently to me each time I read it.When working, my thoughts tend more towards the mechanics of painting ie; is this the right color or how does the light fall.Perhaps it takes someone smarter or more insightful than me to better understand what I've made. But images come to me in strange and unplanned ways and times, like in a supermarket line or at the gym or doing my laundry. Or reading a book or hearing a passage of music.What matters to me is finishing a painting that has some beauty or intelligence and respect for craft. My themes can run to the political or philosophical, the romantic and mythical or reflecting the absurd or comical.I have heard them described as symbolic or allegorical but I don't really know what that is. If you like what you see, thank you. If not, so be it. In any event I'll keep doing this as long as I'm physically and mentally able. And though I have a high rate of ideas that are flawed or just didn't work out, it's okay because that's the price of pushing yourself. I'll simply continue to try to reach my fellow human beings in thoughtful ways. There is still much to do. It makes for a life well-spent.
Thank you, Robert MacDonald